October

Lawyers Journal

Letter to the editor

October 2011

Editor's note: The following is a letter sent by attorney
Steven E. Kramer to MBA President Richard P. Campbell, printed here
with their permission.

Sept. 9, 2011

Dear Attorney Campbell:

Typically, when I receive the Massachusetts Lawyers
Journal, I briefly skim through the articles and look for
familiar faces in the photographs. Fortunately, that was not the
case with the September 2011 issue received yesterday.

Both the President's View and the story written by Mr.
Archambeault contained refreshing perspectives about a leader who
is mindful of not only the day-to-day struggles of a litigation
attorney but the systemic challenges facing the profession. Too
many leaders, in both the public and private sector, bemoan
existing problems but fail to demonstrate either the motivation or
intellectual capacity to understand them or seek solutions.

Your message, which covered a host of contemporary issues facing
the Bar, evidences a refreshing approach to addressing these
problems. Your endorsement by my friend and colleague John Blodgett
provides proof of your commitment to work on solutions.

At the beginning of your "View" column, you quoted a short
passage from my favorite speech, RFK's Day of Affirmation.
The speech contains many memorable passages some of which are
included in the tribute by Ted Kennedy in his eulogy for RFK. The
most notable quote is at the end when he describes RFK as one who
didn't just see things as they were and say why, but rather dreamed
things that never were and said why not.

To the degree that you take that approach in seeking solutions
for some of the problems you describe in your article, you'll make
a unique contribution to a beleaguered profession. I enjoyed
reading about your commitment to try and do so.